Gaming & Culture —

Will the Wii U win u back?

Tell us what you want out of Nintendo's next console.

After about a decade of relative dominance with the NES and Super NES, followed by a decade of relative also-ran status with the Nintendo 64 and GameCube, Nintendo shocked the gaming world with the stratospheric success of the Wii. With a rock-bottom price, innovative new motion-sensitive controller, and the easy-to-understand, everyman appeal of games like Wii Sports and Wii Fit, the system went on to ship nearly 100 million units worldwide. But for its wide commercial success, many long-time gamers quickly grew disillusioned with the Wii, thanks to underpowered hardware that couldn't handle HD graphics and a software library that came to be dominated by nearly skill-free, "waggle-the-controller" mini-game collections.

With the Wii U, Nintendo seems to be trying to recapture the original Wii's sales magic while at the same time mollifying some of the lifelong gamers disillusioned by its predecessor. Instead of the motion-sensitive remote, the new control gimmick is a touchscreen tablet controller that can be used to play games while the TV is otherwise occupied, or to present secret information to only one player during multiplayer games. For more traditional gamers, the company is stressing the system's long-overdue HD graphics support, greater support for downloadable games, an Xbox 360-style controller option, and Wii U conversions for titles ranging from Batman: Arkham City to the upcoming Aliens: Colonial Marines.

On Thursday, Nintendo seems set to finally nail down the details of the promised "holiday season" launch and price point for the Wii U at a New York press event, officially ushering in the "next generation" of home game consoles. The announcement will likely also include the final details of the system's hardware specifications and which titles we can expect during the months-long "launch window." (We'll be there to liveblog the proceedings.)

Before that big announcement, we're asking you, Ars readers, what would it take to get you interested in purchasing the Wii U? Is there a certain price point where the system goes from "impulse buy" to "think about it" to "forget it"? Is there a certain company or game series whose appearance on the system would finally prove to you that Nintendo has resolved its historically bad relations with many third-party publishers? Would more openness to independent developers or player-created content win you over? Maybe Nintendo never lost your support, or perhaps there's nothing you can picture them doing that will win you back.

Whatever the case, leave your thoughts in the comments below, and we'll choose some of the best to feature here ahead of Nintendo's big announcement on Thursday.

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Kyle Orland
Kyle is the Senior Gaming Editor at Ars Technica, specializing in video game hardware and software. He has journalism and computer science degrees from University of Maryland. He is based in the Washington, DC area. Emailkyle.orland@arstechnica.com//Twitter@KyleOrl

210 Reader Comments

Nintendo makes a handful of truly great first-party titles with each generation. But overall, the N64 didn't get enough support and there weren't enough "must have" titles for said console.

The Gamecube never delivered the proper Super Mario 64 sequel, and largely never delivered.

The Wii proved to be a very popular gimmick that gathers dust and no longer sells games.

Now that they're presenting a console that once again likely will be grossly under-powered in comparison to the competition (with a likely very expensive tablet controller), where only one person can use the new controller, and said new controller is akin to shaking a controller in the air, I have even less faith in the Wii U than I had before. I can't see Nintendo winning me back with home console hardware anytime soon.

I really wish they'd just release games for Sony and Microsoft's hardware.

I simply don't like the input method and gameplay style of most current Nintendo-console games. The only games I play on a Nintendo console are Nintendo exclusives (and let's face it; most of the non-Nintendo titles available on Nintendo consoles suck.)

Because of what I wrote above, Nintendo would probably be better off as a software company only.

I've got absolutely zero interest. Until Nintendo stops releasing the same fucking games repeatedly I will not buy one of their consoles.

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There's nothing Nintendo can do to get me interested in the Wii U.

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I'm very much not interested.

Bingo.

The Gamecube and its library provided me with hours of entertainment. Nintendo then completely dropped the ball by halting all sense of urgency and innovation and released a system that is - for all intents and purposes - a Gamecube with a Powerglove. The game library is the same stuff rehashed over and over and over with gimmicky controls for most games and zero innovation for others. The platform's complete lack of compute power doesn't help the situation.

Now Nintendo is releasing yet another gimmicky BS system. Hooray. Let me just drool all over it. Nope, no thanks, never again. You release a truly next-gen console with ridiculous power and maybe I will give a damn about your gimmicky input devices. Until then I will stick with systems that can deliver the audio and video quality while still providing amazing stories and adventures.

See, that's the kicker - you can find all the same types of games on the other platforms. Save the princess, shoot up the zombies, gain XP and fight dragons, whatever it is you can find it on a SUPERIOR SYSTEM with BETTER AUDIO and BETTER VISUALS.

Nope, my Wii collects dust. I prefer to play my emulated Gamecube/N64/SNES/NES/GBA anyday. Mostly Gamecube, which was, to me, their best system with SNES a close second. The Wii was fun, but not worth it overall.

Unfortunately, the issue is not the hardware, but whether software developers are able to make actual "improvements" to gameplay without using gimmicky interaction. It's something that the Wii failed miserably at. Even Nintendo titles fell victim to rather stupid motion controls, all for the sake of claiming "interaction".

Add to this that the plague of quick and dirty ports is inevitable. Developers generally only contribute enough to claim on the box that a game has been "customized" for whatever console peripheral needed. That's a fundamentally different concept than designing a game ground up for a specific peripheral. Not even Nintendo has shown with the Wii that it can really change things beyond waggling your arm instead of waggling an analogue stick. It's unlikely that the current Nintendo regime will be able to think out side of the box, and that goes the same for most major developers. If there is any hope to be found, it's with Indies. And only if the system is open enough will you attract enough of them to really discover revolutionary ideas.

releasing a game system that's not much more powerful than my current game system is not a step forward.

I keep reading about how in some ways it's more powerful and in some ways it's less powerful... than a 7 year old 360/PS3...

and with the poor online infrastructure and reputation that Nintendo has, I doubt it would be where my friends hang out. That E3 online gaming commercial didn't do them any favors. What gamer gets stuck in a game, pauses it, types text messages to all his gamer friends for help, then goes to a video chat to get the advice??? In the modern online world, we have parties of friends together and we chat all the time. We don't type text messages back and forth. We have online co-op play so we can help each other out. We don't do video chat to learn how to play a game. If we have to resort to video, we would use Youtube.

I've already been throwing my wallet at the screen for the Wii U. All I need is a date and a price from Nintendo, and as long as it's not over $300 (which it looks like it won't be), I'll grab one. I buy Nintendo consoles for their games anyway, and I know that the Wii U will eventually have Zelda, Mario, etc. Wishful thinking for a good new Metroid title, but whatever.... what I want will be there.

But I'm not a fan of any of Nintendo's IPs, and I haven't seen a single peice of 3rd party software for it that I felt I had to have. I haven't bought anything for it since launch and it hasn't been plugged in for the last 2 years. Even when it was used, it was mostly for neices and nephews to play Wii sports.

A more interesting question to ask is How surprised would you be if the Wii U does well? I'm getting a vague sense from many of the comments here that their expectation is that it'll do modestly at best.

The one thing that keeps me from agreeing is that its launch is happening at the same time that Microsoft and Sony are totally silent on any plans whatsoever to make a new console. Obviously, they both still have a lot to gain from the current gen, but that also means Nintendo is not only launching without competition, but with no competition on the nearby horizon either. Which means people who might be inclined to hold out, to see if something better pops up, will probably run out of a patience before the other two get a chance to offer something. It also means - due to the Wii U being more advanced than anything in the current gen - that many developers will be able to port 360 and PS3 games straight over to the WiiU with little fuss, or even give them exclusive access to their newest games instead of the other two. That could make the system tough to reject.

On the other hand, the Dreamcast had a huge first-mover advantage over the PS2 and Xbox, and that did nothing for Sega. So maybe I'm making that out to be a bigger deal than it is. It's hard to say because there were so many other reasons the Dreamcast failed, so the comparison isn't straightforward. Nintendo has better copy protection and a better marketing team, so that helps.

After the SNES I havent had an interest in Nintendo. the fact they run older games like Ninja Gaiden doesn't appeal to me. From the original tech demo it look like it ran older games and since this is there first HD system im not expecting much.

Edit, However.. i grew up with Legend of Zelda, link to the past, Mario Kart even the classic metal gear and Ninja turtle's in time along with street fighter etc. To win me back id like to see a remix of there older games like Orange cream said "link to the past HD remake". Also price and decent specs for the machine. Could care less about the tablet controller.

1. A good online experience. The online on the Wii is atrocious and it's frankly pretty embarrassing for any console to be this bad in 2012. The WiiU is supposed to be better, but I definitely am going to adopt a wait and see attitude on it.

2. Good (and continued) 3rd party support. While the WiiU is supposed to have some AAA titles at launch if it ends up ignored after the xbox720 and ps4 come out because it's underpowered I won't be interested. The lack of AAA offerings outside of Nintendo is why I never use my Wii anymore.

3. Good, Original First Party Titles. This is the most important thing, IMO. I'm really not interested in playing another Zelda game that barely differs in gameplay from Ocarina of Time. I don't want Super Mario Galaxy 3. I would love something new. For to buy any console it has to have something compelling that PC gaming can't offer, and enough difference from what I can play on older consoles I already own.

Honestly, I'm not to bullish about this entire generation. The specs of the WIi U are unimpressive and the rumored specs of the next Xbox and PS4 are equally unimpressive (especially considering they're not likely until next winter). Based on pure pretty I think this is the first console generation where the consoles cannot look as good or better than PC games on a decently priced system.

The original consoles had games that simply wouldn't work on computers (sidescrolling platformers took Carmack to figure out how to smoothly scroll the scene with Commander Keen before they showed up on PC), or looked significantly better than a computer that cost 4x as much (I challenge anyone to show me a 1996 computer that could run Tomb Raider that didn't cost $1200+. Even the Xbox had better looking games at launch than most computers could run in 2001 and the 360 was close (if not surpassing) decently priced computers in 2006. Today I own a computer that looks like it will produce better looking and performing games than either of the three upcoming consoles and next year this computer will probably only cost about $800. More than the consoles, but well within the price range of most people who need to purchase a computer anyway. HD gaming as a bonus.

So what would it take for me to consider the WiiU? Definitely not graphical superiority. Guaranteed rock-solid 60FPS at (real, not faked or upscaled) 1080p would start (for every single game through the life of the console) . Mario, Zelda and other Nintendo franchises that actually tried to innovate (and not innovate through the addition of annoyances like Skyward Sword did) would be the real ticket. If all we're going to get is Yet Another (x | Mario, Zelda, Metroid) Game I've got a Wii to take care of those.

Overall, I think I'm going to skip the next generation of consoles. I'm fed-up with their shoddy implementation of DLNA, their reliance on apps to get content to me through other partners and their general determination to sell, sell, sell me any content I want to watch. What I want for a set-top-box is Plex and gaming and the only real way I'm going to get that is through a dedicated HTPC. I'll need to look around and find out if there is any real way to make it so that Plex and Steam (in big-picture mode) are the viable as the sole interfaces for a HTPC and build me that $800 system next year.

I'd love it if the console manufacturers were willing to meet my requirements, but they all seem to want to carve us into their own ecosystem, never minding what we actually want out of them. Nintendo's only difference is they don't seem to care about any of the extra stuff that a set-top box should be able to do in today's world.

So, in short: there's probably nothing that Nintendo would be able to do to get me to purchase a WiiU. I doubt they're going to change the formulas that works for their games, and they're definitely not going to give me the set-top-box experience I want.

Sorry, the hardware is too underpowered. The lack of HD sticks out like a sore thumb on Wii games at this point. In 5 years, what will this thing look like compared to the PS4, XBox 720, or the Steam Engine (ahem)?

We don't know what's in it yet, how do you know it's underpowered? Statements from developers have contradicted one another, some say it's quite powerful (compared to 7 year old consoles, not modern PCs of course), while others say it's a bit weaker.

Only things I've heard indicate it's about on par with the PS3 and XBox 360 (graphically).

Meanwhile, PS4 will apparently be capable of driving 4K TVs and projectors (for video, not sure about games at that resolution). I haven't heard anything about the next XBox, but current PCs could already run games at 4K resolution.

So by all reports (so far), the Wii U will be a generation behind graphically.

Not that I care though. I don't think I'd buy a Wii U if it leap-frogged PCs and cost $200. Nintendo don't make the sorts of games I want to play, and they don't seem to care about attracting 3rd party developers.

To me, the biggest things i noticed when i got the nintendo wii was the weak gui. Admittedly, i just purchased one recently, so i suppose it is understandable considering when it was released, however in this day and age, having used xbox 360 and being an apple computers user for a long while, i had come to expect a certain degree of user functionality and aesthetic appeal. Also, making the externals such as the controllers feel a bit more heavy duty would be a great change, as the controllers (esp. the nun-chuks) felt like a cheap chinese import that would break easily.

Sorry, the hardware is too underpowered. The lack of HD sticks out like a sore thumb on Wii games at this point. In 5 years, what will this thing look like compared to the PS4, XBox 720, or the Steam Engine (ahem)?

I doubt there's going to be a large disparity between the Wii-U and future MS and Sony consoles. Graphics these days aren't making huge leaps forward like it did in the past, incremental advances are more common. Look at something like HL2 which was released in 2004, and compare it to modern games. It still looks pretty good. Besides, Sony and MS aren't going to release 600 dollar powerhouses this time around.

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I could care less about the tablet controller. It's likely to be neat, but that kind of thing didn't do a lot on the Dreamcast VMU.

I'm not sure if that's an appropriate comparison. The VMU was a tiny black and white screen that had no touch. The Wii-U controller has a 6.2" color touchscreen, motion controls and a gyroscope, and is capable of streaming games directly from the console so you can just play it on there. Lots of stuff we have today was a bust in the past, but that doesn't mean it will always be a bust. We've had devices in the past with touchscreens that have failed miserably, but are all the rage today. The technology to make them really work has only come around recently.

My Wii is still hooked up. I don't need to rebuy the same Nintendo games from the last 25 years. (If only their online system allowed me to redownload them to new hardware...[/quote]

Are you referring to stuff you've bought on the Wii? Because you'll be able to transfer it.

WiseWeasel wrote:

Nope. The Wii U controller looks like an ergonomic nightmare, much too big and heavy to hold up for extended periods.

Anyway. I think it's intriguing, and it has potential to offer up a cool new experience. I'm also a fan of having a direct input device on consoles, rather than just a controller. I doubt I'm going to buy one right away, though. I'd like to wait and see what kind of games and experiences it has first. If it has multiple good games that interest me, then I could see myself buying one.

Also, I don't really get some of the hate being directed at Nintendo. I would much rather have them innovating, introducing new ideas and trying to move gaming forward, than just making an xbox 720 or ps4 clone. I think stuff like this is inevitable, due to the diminishing returns of improved graphics. They need to find other ways to compete, because heavily relying on graphical prowess to ship units isn't going to cut it anymore.

I'd just want a controller I can forget about when using, gimmicks like Wiimote waggling and touch screens do more to harm immersion than enhance it for me. I wont buy it but will probably try it since a person I know is a complete gadget maniac and buys every single console (and then just leaves them to collect dust after a few months at most).

If I remember correctly, I believe that was taken out when the second iteration of the Wii's came out. I could be wrong though. I'd wager to say that this option is probably WAY down their list of things to do/add/include.

Only things I've heard indicate it's about on par with the PS3 and XBox 360 (graphically).

Meanwhile, PS4 will apparently be capable of driving 4K TVs and projectors (for video, not sure about games at that resolution). I haven't heard anything about the next XBox, but current PCs could already run games at 4K resolution.

So by all reports (so far), the Wii U will be a generation behind graphically.

Not that I care though. I don't think I'd buy a Wii U if it leap-frogged PCs and cost $200. Nintendo don't make the sorts of games I want to play, and they don't seem to care about attracting 3rd party developers.

The 360 and PS3 are running off of ~7 year old tech. The Wii-U is going to be a few generations ahead of that.

As for the PS4 supposedly pushing 4k resolution, I'm skeptical that it will actually push games in 4k res. 4k requires some hefty hardware, so either it's only outputting 4k for blu-rays and the like, or it's going to cost a shitload.

especially considering [the next Xbox and PS4] are not likely until next winter.

Ha, at BEST. I'm feeling pretty pessimistic about the timetable for Microsoft and Sony's next consoles. It would not surprise me at all if one or both of them take till the middle or end of 2014 to finally be released. This is mainly because of how ridiculously long it took them both to make any money off their systems, *especially* Sony. I bet they were pretty jealous of Nintendo making an actual profit per Wii sold rather than a loss. So even after they lock down the hardware, my money's on them waiting extra-long for the cost of those components to go down, Moore's Law wise. Which might mean not having the most cutting-edge tech, but hell, when you consider how long the tech in the 360 and PS3 stagnated, it's peanuts. And thanks to the web integration they have in the current gen systems, it's not really like they're hard-pressed to compete with Nintendo.

I'd be more than happy to be proven wrong of course. The more competition, the better after all.

I thought the Wii was one of the best consoles I ever owned. Nintendo finally delivered on a great first party offering. Wii Sports got the whole family playing games, everyone loved creating their own Miis. The Mario Galaxy games far surpassed Mario 64 and Sunshine. Twilight Princess and Skyward Sword were excellent. Metroid Prime 3 was the best in the series. Some great side scrollers like NSMB and DK Country Returns. There were also some great third party titles like No More Heroes, Trauma Center, and the definitive versions of RE4 and Okami. The virtual console gave me a chance to catch up on classics that I missed.

No it wasn't perfect. No HD but it never bothered me much. Great games are still fun regardless. Online was a mess. The Wii missed out on a lot of good third party titles and got a ton of really sorry excuses for games.

That being said, the Wii U library doesn't excite me so far. Pikmin 3 looks fun but that's about the only killer app so far. I also hope the third party support doesn't deteriorate when PS4 and the new Xbox come out and developers leave the Wii U behind. At this point there are decent third party ports on the way like Batman and Assassin's Creed and I hope that maintains. I probably get one eventually but for the first time I can wait on a Nintendo console.

I bought a wii. It was the first time I ever bought an nintendo product actually.

I won't be making that mistake again. Aside from the wii sports, I pretty much hated every single game I tried on it. Especially the first party games like Zelda: TP. I really truly do not understand why so many people love Nintendo games like that and mario etc. Different strokes for different folks I guess.

But lesson learned: Nintendo do not make the kind of games I love, and the people who do make them didn't do much with the wii at all over time. I really don't trust the announcements of ports of ME3 etc to WiiU anyways. I'm sure nintendo are paying a lot of money to try to attract those kinds of games for launch, but I doubt they'll be able to compete in the longer run as games are made with more demanding hardware requirements in mind.

So I'll pay strict attention to the pc, the next xbox, and chalk up the whole nintendo thing to experience.

The Wii is the only thing I've ever lined up to buy at launch and I played it enough that it doesn't owe me anything. Unfortunately I might consider the Wii U under other circumstances but I just don't have the time to play console games these days. There'd have to be some truly awesome software to push me back into the market, and all I really expect from Nintendo is a bunch of updated Zeldas and Marios. Sorry Mr Miyamoto, that won't be enough.

It would have to be cheap, and it would have to have a mountain of killer exclusives. I don't think Nintendo is going to be able to win me back anytime soon. I'll probably buy the system once they cut the price once or twice, assuming that they don't screw up the next Smash Bros or Metroid games up like they managed with the previous installments.

There are only two franchises that Nintendo has that have any appeal to me anymore:

Legend of Zelda, and Metroid. I don't see myself spending $300+ on a console for two games. However, I am graced with a large number of friends who will be getting a Wii U, so I may end up buying the next Zelda title just to play it, and possible Metroid if it's a blockbuster hit.

Otherwise no, I'd rather sink what money I do have into PC upgrades and Steam games. When I'm not dumping money into programming language guides and tuition. Or a new motorcycle.

Day one. I've got a 7 year old and a 3 year old and a wife. We play games together. Mario, Zelda, Metroid, Mario Kart, Wii Sports Resort. We all love the games. It's going to continue on the Wii U with some new perspectives via the GamePad and it'll all look sharper to boot.

The latest on the NSMBWU is that it is taking the Super Mario World direction, which is encouraging as the straight forward paths of NSMBW were a bit disappointing.

Nintendo Land looks like a way more fun Wii Sports style mash up of games in that it includes the Nintendo franchises.

We've gotten so much constant play out of the Wii -- the PS3 is mostly for playing blu-rays, no time for "adult" games-- that it's a no brainer.

Nintendo started losing me when it didn't follow up with awesome 2D sequels to games like Super Metroid, Super Castlevania IV, and Blaster Master on N64. They pushed release of 3D games and party games. I'm an older gamer, raised on Atari and Apple ][c and Amiga. It's frankly staggering what developers could accomplish on an Amiga filling one floppy disk. Imagine if that care and attention had been put towards an epic 2D platformer and the associated music? Look what Sony did. Hell, look at what Ubisoft did with Rayman Origins?

Nintendo let the same opportunity pass with the GC and Wii. I love single player, punishing games that require skill. Most recent stuff seems to focus a lot on multiplayer at the expense of single player. I know I'm not the majority that Nintendo goes for. I don't play Pokemon or Super Smash Bros - never got into them. I'm not interested in playing with a bunch of people locally. I get my multiplayer online on my PC where the graphics are awesome and the controls great.

I don't see the Wii U addressing my concerns in the least. I see a great opportunity for game companies to cater to us. 2D games don't require as much development time or cost compared to 3D games these days. If Nintendo wants to get my attention, they need to get back to basics. I don't see a tablet doing that and the Wiimote just... is not a good controller.

I don't think there's anything they can announce given what is already known that will bring me onboard. We know that it won't be as powerful as the 360 or PS3. We know third party publishers aren't jumping on the band wagon. We know the online component won't even be comparable to PSN let alone XBL. And then there's Smart Glass for the 360.

Then add in what we can assume, namely that the price will be more than $300 and that the touchscreen won't be used much by cross platform AAA titles, and there's really no reason Nintendo could give me Thursday to sell me on the Wii U. I definitely have no need for yet another box under the TV and given that this thing seems to do nothing special, why bother?

Old age and responsibilities preclude me from partaking in videogames anymore.

This - looking at Nintendo's history, they got the biggest dust collectors collection. Last thing I stood 14+ hours in line for my kids was for the Wii. Am getting too old for Nintendo's rat-race of Hardware devices that are too limited in scope in today's "multi-functional-mobile-world"

Price: It would definitely need to be cheaper than current PS3/Xbox 360 prices. How much cheaper depends on what the final specs are and what is included in the package.

Games: Nintendo usually cover most of my interests when it comes to games. I would really love a new Metroid game, preferably first-person like the Metroid Prime games. As for third-party games, my opinion is that the touchscreen controller would be perfect for tweaking the controls of traditionally non-console games (like strategy or RPGs) to make them appeal to console gamers. I'd love to see what Bethesda or Bioware could do with it. Also, the Wii U system seems perfect for reviving interest in local multiplayer, so this is something I'd expect to see a lot of.

Independent developers and player-created content: Both of those would be an asset to any console, but I have doubts that the control-freak in Nintendo is gone or even taking steps towards the door. There were some great games on WiiWare (eg. the Lostwinds games) and I would love to see this kind of thing again, but I am not holding my breath.

Also, speaking for myself, the deal-maker or deal-breaker for each new generation of consoles is backwards compatibility, not only the availability of it, but also the implementation. Although the world seems to push us, gently but firmly, towards an all-digital-content future (for which the prerequisites are nowhere near in place, but I digress), I have a huge library of disc-based games (and some downloads) and I would love to place them in a new machine and see them working. I understand their reluctance to support backwards compatibility with the Gamecube (it wasn't as big a seller as the Wii) but I hope the Wii compatibility implementation is better than "good enough", meaning I'd love to see stuff like upscaling of Wii games to HD, but not via a buy-the-game-again scheme.

Finally, I'm not sure of where the Wii U stands in this regard as I haven't been very diligent in following the news, but I hope it offers at least basic multimedia capabilities like music and video playback.

As a Non-nintendo fan there is hardly any pricepoint they could set that could get me interested, but maybe I'm not their focus. Still, I'm an active gamer, such lack of interest should be worrying imo (since anecdotally there seem to be many more like me).Focussing on a gadget/peripheral worked once, but I doubt it'll work again.

In addition, a controller that you have to look at to use seems to be a bad idea to me pretty much by definition. Extremely sceptical about the use in games, especially since Nintendo is clearly relying on developers to figure this out.